Brent Yergensen

Brent Yergensen, Ph.D. (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) is Provost and Chief Academic Officer at Southern Virginia University. He brings more than twelve years of academic leadership experience, having previously served as Chair of Communication and Professor of Communication at The University of Texas at Tyler, as well as Associate Dean, University Curriculum Chair, Director of Evening Education, and Chair of Communication at Utah Tech University. He also served as a faculty member at BYU–Hawaii. Across these roles, he has led academic programs, faculty and staff, curriculum development, external partnerships, fundraising initiatives, and institutional growth.

Yergensen is an interdisciplinary scholar whose research explores rhetoric, communication, popular culture, religion, philosophy, science, technology, and the cultural meaning of death and transcendence. He has published more than 40 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, including work in Communication Quarterly, Review of Communication, Atlantic Journal of Communication, International Review of Sociology, Canadian Review of American Studies, Journal of Religion, Film & Media, Film & History, and Journal of Communication and Religion. He is the originator of two published Communication theories and has presented selected papers at national and international conferences. His 2026 book, Out of a Deep Sleep: A Voice from the Dust and the Destiny of Societies, is being published by Wipf & Stock.

Alongside his academic scholarship, Yergensen is a published poet and essayist, with poetry appearing in venues including Poetry Pacific, The RavensPerch, Academy of the Heart and Mind, Bewildering Stories, Literary Yard, and Synchronized Chaos. His work as both scholar and poet reflects a continuing interest in the intersection of ideas, culture, art, and human meaning. He has received university and professional honors including the Distinguished Service Award, Teacher of the Year, Faculty Recognition Award, and a fundraising leadership award, and has served as a reviewer and editorial board member for multiple academic journals as well as a panelist for the National Endowment for the Humanities.